Breakfast Bars (DIY – Style)

I am a bit of a cereal addict. I eat it dry or with milk and always a mixture of several different kinds. Growing up we always had a plethora of cereal choices – most were in the All-Bran / Grapenuts family, so when I moved into my own place I went a little overboard on the sugar cereals, Cinnamon Toast Crunch being a particular weakness. Having since reined it in, I gravitate towards Special K and Kashi that have a nice balance.

These bars are great because you can tailor them to your personal preference and what you have on hand. The oats help to bind everything together but if you don’t have any, you could easily smash up some of the cereal.

When making my own bars I used PB2, a product I have just recently discovered and am obsessed with. The oil has been pressed out of roasted peanuts, leaving a powder that has all the taste of peanut butter but almost half the calories! It also has about the same amount of protein per serving. Amazing.

2 cups cereal – I used 1 cup of Special K and 1 cup of Multi-Grain Cheerios but you can pick your favorites. I think something like Kashi Go Lean would be great for on the go since it is packed with protein and has a nice crunch to it.

½ cup oats

½ cup dried fruit

½ cup nuts

½ cup honey

½ cup peanut butter or any other nut butter

½ tsp salt (if using salted nuts, dont add salt)

Instructions

Line an 8” square cake pan with parchment paper (or if you are like me and don’t have a square cake pan, be creative! I used a square-ish Tupperware container). Spray parchment with oil and set aside.

In a small pot over medium heat, combine the honey and nut butter of choice. While it is heating up whisk the two together until smooth. You just want to warm up the honey to thin it out a bit so when you start to see some bubbles around the sides, turn off the heat.

Pour over the cereal and with a spatula, toss everything until all of the dry ingredients are evenly coated. Spread into prepared pan, fold excess parchment over top and press firmly to flatten. Refrigerate for at least an hour, until set.